Ian McGarry: "Mario's a genius"....

[RandomJ]

I'd say Silva is a genius or if not now he is very close to being one. His intelligence on the pitch and picking out passes that most people would not even think about let alone pull off show that. Mario isn't a genius he's just a very gifted player who needs to apply himself more.

 

[Frank H]

No-one in that panel comes away with credit.

McGarry for being so ridiculous to use such terminology about a player who is yet to achieve great things and whose main attribute is scoring some decent goals. The likes of Zidane, an artist with the ball, with complete mastery of it, .

did you saw a lot of the 20 years old zidane so...

Enough to know that there is not a cat in hell's chance of Balotelli ever turning into a creative maestro in the manner of Zidane, Maradona, Messi, etc. Yes, more than enough.

And if you think that he ever will be that type of player (or even the type of creative player that Ronaldo is - although that is more plausible) then you must be tripping. That, or ridiculously biased/obsessed with the player. Oh, hang on......

At best, out of the handful of footballers that have legitimate claims to the title of genius (and let's not underestimate what that word suggests and how it must only apply to the best of the best), the only one that plays anywhere near a similar manner to Balotelli is the fat Ronaldo. And if you think they are the same player at 21, then we are talking a different language.

All that sounds like criticism of Balotelli. It isn't. I'm delighted with him this season. But that sort of hyperbole does no-one any favours.

But strictly speaking, the term "genius" shouldn't be applied to any footballer, or any sports player. It should only be applied to people such as Albert Einstein, Ludwig van Beethoven, William Shakespeare, Leonardo da Vinci etc.

But if we are going to use the term "genius" for footballers, I don't see why it should be confined to players of the Zidane, Messi type. Why wouldn't an absolutely superb defender, such as Kompany at his best, also qualify? Or a top-class striker? Or a great goalkeeper?

 

[RandomJ]

did you saw a lot of the 20 years old zidane so...

Enough to know that there is not a cat in hell's chance of Balotelli ever turning into a creative maestro in the manner of Zidane, Maradona, Messi, etc. Yes, more than enough.

And if you think that he ever will be that type of player (or even the type of creative player that Ronaldo is - although that is more plausible) then you must be tripping. That, or ridiculously biased/obsessed with the player. Oh, hang on......

At best, out of the handful of footballers that have legitimate claims to the title of genius (and let's not underestimate what that word suggests and how it must only apply to the best of the best), the only one that plays anywhere near a similar manner to Balotelli is the fat Ronaldo. And if you think they are the same player at 21, then we are talking a different language.

All that sounds like criticism of Balotelli. It isn't. I'm delighted with him this season. But that sort of hyperbole does no-one any favours.

But strictly speaking, the term "genius" shouldn't be applied to any footballer, or any sports player. It should only be applied to people such as Albert Einstein, Ludwig van Beethoven, William Shakespeare, Leonardo da Vinci etc.

But if we are going to use the term "genius" for footballers, I don't see why it should be confined to players of the Zidane, Messi type. Why wouldn't an absolutely superb defender, such as Kompany at his best, also qualify? Or a top-class striker? Or a great goalkeeper?

I'm sorry but why shouldn't it be applied to footballers? Those people you listed took their field and advanced it and did things no one else could do. I'd say Messi is very much a genius in his field as he does things with the ball people can only dream about.

 

[JohnMaddocksAxe]

did you saw a lot of the 20 years old zidane so...

Enough to know that there is not a cat in hell's chance of Balotelli ever turning into a creative maestro in the manner of Zidane, Maradona, Messi, etc. Yes, more than enough.

And if you think that he ever will be that type of player (or even the type of creative player that Ronaldo is - although that is more plausible) then you must be tripping. That, or ridiculously biased/obsessed with the player. Oh, hang on......

At best, out of the handful of footballers that have legitimate claims to the title of genius (and let's not underestimate what that word suggests and how it must only apply to the best of the best), the only one that plays anywhere near a similar manner to Balotelli is the fat Ronaldo. And if you think they are the same player at 21, then we are talking a different language.

All that sounds like criticism of Balotelli. It isn't. I'm delighted with him this season. But that sort of hyperbole does no-one any favours.

But strictly speaking, the term "genius" shouldn't be applied to any footballer, or any sports player. It should only be applied to people such as Albert Einstein, Ludwig van Beethoven, William Shakespeare, Leonardo da Vinci etc.

But if we are going to use the term "genius" for footballers, I don't see why it should be confined to players of the Zidane, Messi type. Why wouldn't an absolutely superb defender, such as Kompany at his best, also qualify? Or a top-class striker? Or a great goalkeeper?

I want to say something about it being more to do with a combination of intelligence and the ability to see and carry out things that others can't. Rather than just pure physical ability. Which tend to be more the case with powerful strikers or keepers (although obviously not exclusively).

For similar reasons, you rarely hear a sprinter or prop forward being referred to as a genius.

I've not got time to expand on it now though.

 

[kennycar]

I still like John Barnes. Steve Claridge is consistently a **** and needs to be euthenised for his own sake.

 

[nomorethaksintimes]

Enough to know that there is not a cat in hell's chance of Balotelli ever turning into a creative maestro in the manner of Zidane, Maradona, Messi, etc. Yes, more than enough.

And if you think that he ever will be that type of player (or even the type of creative player that Ronaldo is - although that is more plausible) then you must be tripping. That, or ridiculously biased/obsessed with the player. Oh, hang on......

At best, out of the handful of footballers that have legitimate claims to the title of genius (and let's not underestimate what that word suggests and how it must only apply to the best of the best), the only one that plays anywhere near a similar manner to Balotelli is the fat Ronaldo. And if you think they are the same player at 21, then we are talking a different language.

All that sounds like criticism of Balotelli. It isn't. I'm delighted with him this season. But that sort of hyperbole does no-one any favours.

But strictly speaking, the term "genius" shouldn't be applied to any footballer, or any sports player. It should only be applied to people such as Albert Einstein, Ludwig van Beethoven, William Shakespeare, Leonardo da Vinci etc.

But if we are going to use the term "genius" for footballers, I don't see why it should be confined to players of the Zidane, Messi type. Why wouldn't an absolutely superb defender, such as Kompany at his best, also qualify? Or a top-class striker? Or a great goalkeeper?

I'm sorry but why shouldn't it be applied to footballers? Those people you listed took their field and advanced it and did things no one else could do. I'd say Messi is very much a genius in his field as he does things with the ball people can only dream about.

That's something that's always interested me. I think the standard wisdom in football is that it's harder to be an amazing attacking player than a defensive one - that's been reflected in the average transfer fees paid for different positions. Personally I've always felt goalkeepers are horrendously undervalued when clubs weigh up their budgets - Buffon to Juve for £30m was the best piece of business ever.

 

[Frank H]

Enough to know that there is not a cat in hell's chance of Balotelli ever turning into a creative maestro in the manner of Zidane, Maradona, Messi, etc. Yes, more than enough.

And if you think that he ever will be that type of player (or even the type of creative player that Ronaldo is - although that is more plausible) then you must be tripping. That, or ridiculously biased/obsessed with the player. Oh, hang on......

At best, out of the handful of footballers that have legitimate claims to the title of genius (and let's not underestimate what that word suggests and how it must only apply to the best of the best), the only one that plays anywhere near a similar manner to Balotelli is the fat Ronaldo. And if you think they are the same player at 21, then we are talking a different language.

All that sounds like criticism of Balotelli. It isn't. I'm delighted with him this season. But that sort of hyperbole does no-one any favours.

But strictly speaking, the term "genius" shouldn't be applied to any footballer, or any sports player. It should only be applied to people such as Albert Einstein, Ludwig van Beethoven, William Shakespeare, Leonardo da Vinci etc.

But if we are going to use the term "genius" for footballers, I don't see why it should be confined to players of the Zidane, Messi type. Why wouldn't an absolutely superb defender, such as Kompany at his best, also qualify? Or a top-class striker? Or a great goalkeeper?

I'm sorry but why shouldn't it be applied to footballers? Those people you listed took their field and advanced it and did things no one else could do. I'd say Messi is very much a genius in his field as he does things with the ball people can only dream about.

Sorry, Messi may be the greatest footballer there has ever been, and even that's arguable, but he hasn't advanced football in the way that Einstein advanced physics, Beethoven advanced music, etc.

If there was any equivalent in football, it would be someone, probably a manager, who invented a new strategy or tactic which revolutionised the way the sport was played.

I am merely commenting that terms such as "genius" are much overused, and hence cheapened these days. There was even a report that some scientists were calling Wayne Rooney a genius because of what he could do with a ball, given the complexity of the nerve circuits involved. I disagree. Using the same analogy, many animal species are full of geniuses because of the wonderful precision of their physical activities.

But if we are going to extend the term to physical activities in this way, I don't see why the sort of physical precision involved in being a great striker or defender wouldn't count.

Having said that, I do see that the best creative midfielders might be the most deserving - but I suspect that's being over pedantic.

 

[niall'sdiscoshorts]

cantana kung foo kicks a fan..........
zidane headbuts another player........
maradona is good with his hands........
mario is good at darts......








genius.........

 

[morleyswife]

Ian McGarry: "Mario's a genius"....

M

 

[citizens_1976]

I agree with the rest. He isn't a genius yet although he does genius things in a football match. He's very unpredictable and can be our Cantona. On the other hand I don't think he's a genius yet and Silva is someone who's classed as a genius.